


Explain

by evilwriter37



Series: Scholar’s Mate [20]
Category: DreamWorks Dragons (Cartoon), How to Train Your Dragon (Movies)
Genre: Abusive Relationships, M/M, Running Away
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-04
Updated: 2020-04-04
Packaged: 2021-02-28 23:01:51
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,716
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23475097
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/evilwriter37/pseuds/evilwriter37
Summary: Not knowing anywhere else to go, Hiccup runs away to Dagur's house to get away from Viggo and his abuse.
Relationships: Viggo Grimborn/Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III
Series: Scholar’s Mate [20]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1251188
Comments: 11
Kudos: 39





	Explain

Hiccup was tentative as he knocked on the door. He was frightened about the reception he would get, but he hadn’t known anywhere else to go. He couldn’t go home: his dad would be furious with him. So he’d chosen here, an hour and a half ride from the college. His Uber had cost him quite a lot, but he still had money from Viggo, not having spent it all. He wished he could ride his motorcycle, but they weren’t allowed on campus. 

Hiccup waited for a few moments. His Uber had left. He couldn’t just turn around. There was a car in the driveway, so at least one person was home. Maybe Heather would answer the door. That would be nice. 

The door opened, and the man who opened it said nothing for a moment. Then he leaned against the doorway, pose showing his naked torso. His big arms and shoulders were covered by a leather jacket.

“Haven’t seen you in a long time,” Dagur said. “And then you just show up at my house without saying anything?”

“I don’t have your number,” Hiccup said sheepishly. He scraped a foot against the stone of the front stoop. “I just… Can I come inside? I’ll explain it all then.”

Dagur nodded his head into the house, let Hiccup enter, baggage and all. The door shut behind them, and suddenly, Hiccup was feeling very trapped. This was the man who had gone after him in high school, who had molested him behind one of the buildings because he’d wanted him so badly. But he was the only person Hiccup could have gone to. He figured Dagur might have changed since then, that maybe he wasn’t all that much of a bad guy. Well, he hoped not. He didn’t want to fall from one abusive situation into another. But, Dagur lived with his sister now. He knew because she and Astrid were dating. Maybe Heather kept him in check. 

“Put your bags down anywhere,” Dagur said. “Looks like you have a lot of explaining to do.”

Hiccup put his bags down in the front entryway, glad to be free of their weight. Then he followed Dagur into the kitchen. The house was enormous, as his dad had been rich. “Had been” as he was deceased now and had left the house and his fortune to his two children. Heather had been living elsewhere, but Dagur had somehow convinced her to come back and live with him.

Hiccup sat at the kitchen table while Dagur searched in the fridge for something. He came out with two beers. Hiccup hadn’t had beer before. Viggo had only introduced him to the more expensive alcohols. Still, he would try it. He didn’t want to seem like a wuss in front of Dagur, who would make fun of him for such a thing.

“So, what’s going on?” Dagur asked as he sat across from him. He opened his beer with a bottle opener, did the same for Hiccup’s, passed it to him. “Must be pretty bad for you to show up here with all those bags.”

“I need a place to stay,” Hiccup said. He took a sip from his beer, found that he actually liked it and the burn it created. He’d gotten used to that burn. 

“Mm, and what’s wrong with your house? Or your dorm room?”

“I… I couldn’t stay on campus,” Hiccup told him. He didn’t know how much he was willing to reveal, how much Dagur would push. “And if I went home my dad would be mad at me.”

“What? For missing classes? It  _ is  _ a Monday afternoon.” Dagur took a long swig of his beer. Hiccup wouldn’t be surprised if this wasn’t his first of the day.

“For… a lot of things.”

Dagur put his beer down, looked at Hiccup very seriously. “Explain.”

Hiccup fiddled nervously with his beer cap. “Well, I, uh, have a boyfriend,” he said. “And things have gotten… pretty bad recently. I had to get away. Had to escape it. So I came here.”

“Ah, and your dad doesn’t approve of him,” Dagur figured out.

“No.”

Dagur leaned across the table. Hiccup didn’t understand how he was just wearing a leather jacket with no shirt. Wasn’t it uncomfortable? Wasn’t he cold? It was early spring, and a chill still clung onto the air.

“What do you mean by ‘pretty bad?’”

Now Hiccup fiddled with the strings of his hoodie. He didn’t know what to say. He took a swig of beer to keep himself from talking. 

“Abusive,” Hiccup finally said after long moments in silence. “I… don’t know how to get out of it. I don’t know how to break up with him. I’m afraid he might hurt me if I do.” It was more complicated than that too. Hiccup was in one of Viggo’s business classes. He could make him fail, affect his GPA. And besides, Hiccup didn’t want to see him. What if he took him aside after class and did something to him? It was a dangerous situation, one Hiccup hadn’t known how to get out of other than running away. And so he’d run to Dagur. His dad wouldn’t like him running away, would tell him to deal with it. And he wouldn’t be happy that he was still dating Viggo. Hiccup hadn’t seen or talked to him since that incident over winter break.

Dagur just nodded sagely, like he understood. Then, he drank some more of his beer. Hiccup just watched him idly, not sure of what to say next, not sure of what Dagur was going to say.

“So you want to stay here,” Dagur said. It wasn’t a question, but Hiccup nodded.

“With me.”

“Yes.”

“But… what I did to you in high school,” Dagur said. “The way I harassed you. How can you forgive me for that?”

Hiccup glared. “I never said I forgave you.”

“Alright, alright. No need to get all worked up.” Dagur put his beer down. It was half empty already. “You can stay here. We have a guest bedroom.” He ran a hand through his unruly red hair. “Damn, this is crazy. I’m sorry, Hiccup.”

“Sorry?”

“About you getting into such a bad relationship. How long has it been going on?”

Hiccup didn’t know how to answer. He’d been dating Viggo since September, but the real abuse hadn’t started till recently. Or, so he thought. Maybe there had been signs of it all along and Hiccup had missed them. What  _ were  _ the warning signs of abuse anyway? Viggo’s brutality had just seemed to come out of nowhere.

“I’ve been dating him since September,” Hiccup answered. “But things only got bad recently.”

Dagur nodded. “Do you have his number blocked?”

“What?”

“His number. Do you have it blocked?”

“Uh, no.” Hiccup was too scared to do that, and part of him still wanted to be able to see what Viggo texted him. He was afraid that the man would grow more angry if he blocked his number. Then again, he didn’t plan on answering any of his texts or phone calls. Maybe he  _ should  _ just block it. 

Dagur stretched out his hand, wiggled his fingers. “Give me your phone.”

“What? No!”

“If you can’t block his number, I’m doing it for you. Give me your phone.”

Hiccup sighed, but relinquished his phone to Dagur.

“Okay, what’s his name?”

“Viggo.”

Dagur raised his eyebrows. “That’s interesting.” Dagur scrolled through his contacts. “Okay, got him.” He poked one finger at the screen. “Annnd blocked.” He handed the phone back to Hiccup, which Hiccup was grateful for. “There you go.”

“Thanks,” Hiccup mumbled. He felt strange about having his boyfriend’s number blocked. He hadn’t thought he would ever have to do this. 

“Now, come on. I’ll show you the guest bedroom.”

Dagur helped Hiccup with his bags, led him through the house. Hiccup didn’t know what to expect of the guest bedroom, but it was large, with a king-sized bed. Of course. They had money. The decorations were sparse, as it was with guest bedrooms. It even had its own private bathroom with a shower. 

They set Hiccup’s bags down. Hiccup wanted to unpack, put his clothing in the drawers, but Dagur lingered.

“What is it?”

“Just looking at you,” Dagur stated. “Haven’t seen you in a long time.”

Hiccup swallowed uncomfortably, face heating a little. He was alone with Dagur. Anything could happen. He realized the situation he was in was kind of dangerous, but he’d had no other choice. Dagur wouldn’t judge him for this, not like his dad. 

“You done looking?”

“Yeah, yeah. Sorry. Get unpacked. You’re free to any room in the house and anything in the fridge and pantry. Dinner’s usually at 6. Heather’s a really good cook.”

“Thanks.” 

With that, Dagur left, closing the door behind him. Hiccup went and locked it, not wanting to be bothered. He meant to unpack, but he just sat on the bed. He took out his phone, looked at Viggo’s name in his contacts. Yes, he was blocked. That was good, he supposed. 

Being with Dagur was strange. He’d hurt him in the past, but now he was being kind to him, showing him hospitality. He hadn’t judged him for this either. Hiccup knew Dagur wouldn’t have judged him. He wasn’t a very judgmental person, and he was pansexual, so he certainly wouldn’t have judged him for dating a guy. 

Hiccup took off his shoes and laid back on the bed. It was comfortable, too big for him. Hiccup had gotten used to having someone in a bed this size with him, had gotten used to having Viggo. 

“God, what am I going to do?” Hiccup said to himself, rubbing at his face. He felt so distressed by this whole situation. He knew he couldn’t hide out with Dagur forever. He would have to face Viggo at some point.

But no, he couldn’t think about that right now. Now, he was relatively safe, at least from Viggo. Who knew about Dagur? How would he act around him? Would he hurt him again? It didn’t seem like it. He was treating him differently than he had in high school, with much more respect to his boundaries. He’d even sounded ashamed of what he had done to him. 

With a sigh, Hiccup got off the bed and began to unpack.

  
  


Dinner was around 6 just as Dagur had said it would be. They were eating chicken cutlets and homemade french fries. And again, as Dagur had said, Heather truly was a good cook. She sat at the dining room table with the two of them. For a while, no one said anything, just focused on eating. Hiccup avoided contact with both of the siblings. Dagur had at least put a damn shirt on. 

“Dagur told me about what’s going on,” Heather finally said, breaking the uncomfortable silence. At least, it was uncomfortable for Hiccup. 

Hiccup poked at his chicken with his fork. “Yeah?”

“I’m glad you came here,” Heather said. “You’ll be safe from Viggo.”

She was right about that. Viggo didn’t know where Dagur lived, didn’t know where he had gone. And he wouldn’t check his house either, not after Stoick had threatened him. 

“Thanks,” Hiccup said. “I really mean it, guys. Thank you. This is a mess and I just don’t know what to do.”

“We’ll figure it out together.” 

Hiccup was surprised by those words. Heather had been rather bitchy and angsty in high school. Maybe she was still angsty, as shown by her black clothing, but she certainly wasn’t acting bitchy anymore. Hiccup had known about this change through Astrid, but it was still strange to him.

And Dagur was acting different too. Not as aggressive, not as creepy. Maybe the siblings living together had changed each of them. Or maybe the death of their father had done that. Stoick had been really sad for a long while about that death. He and Oswald had been good friends. 

Hiccup felt comforted by Heather’s words too. He’d thought he would have to figure it out on his own, but here he was being given an offer of help. 

“Thank you. I’ll take you up on that. Just… not now.” 

Heather nodded. “I understand. The situation you’re in is a really tough one.”

They continued eating, but not in silence. Dagur, not having gone to college, asked Hiccup what it was like, and Hiccup regaled him with stories of the antics of his professors and friends. By the time dinner ended and they were having ice cream for dessert, all three of them were laughing. Heather didn’t know what campus life was like either. She was doing her college courses online. She seemed very interested in what he had to say. 

Hiccup went right to his room after dessert, feeling exhausted, which was strange. He hadn’t even done much that day. Maybe it was emotional exhaustion. Yeah, that could be it. 

After getting in his pajamas, Hiccup laid in bed. He scrolled through social media on his phone for a bit, but found himself closing every app. What if Viggo found him through them? No, he couldn’t post anything, couldn’t say anything. He’d turned off his location settings just in case, fearful that Viggo had someway to track his phone. Social media was a bad idea. 

Hiccup’s friends were texting him like mad. He explained to each of them that he’d gone off campus and didn’t know when he’d be coming back. 

Fishlegs called him. Hiccup let the phone ring, not sure if he should answer or not. But, finally, before it went to voicemail, he did.

“Hiccup, where in god’s name are you?” Fishlegs asked in lieu of a greeting. 

“I’m at Dagur’s,” Hiccup answered honestly. He could tell his roommate and best friend where he really was. He never saw Viggo, didn’t take any of his classes. He wouldn’t spill it to him.

“What? Why? Don’t you hate him?”

Hiccup rolled over in bed, sighed. “I don’t… I don’t hate him,” he answered honestly. “And I didn’t know where else to go.”

“Why not home? What’s going on?”

“God, my dad would be furious with me. No, I couldn’t go home.”

“What’s going on, Hiccup?” Fishlegs repeated.

“Nothing. Just, uh, stuff. Not good stuff. I had to get away.”

Hiccup could hear Fishlegs sigh on the other end. “You know I’m always here to talk if you need me.”

“I know.”

“Then tell me what’s going on.”

And so, wanting to free himself from all this turmoil, Hiccup told him. He told him about dating Viggo, he told him about the bdsm, he told him about the abuse. It took a long time to tell it all, and Hiccup was feeling more tired when it was finished, but more free as well, like one of the weights had been lifted off his chest. 

“Damn, Hiccup,” Fishlegs said. Hiccup had hardly ever heard his best friend swear. “That’s a lot.”

“I know.”

“What are you going to do about it?”

“I don’t know yet. I need time to think, time away from him.”

“Well, I hope you’re making the right choice.”

“Yeah, me too.”

They said their goodbyes, and then Hiccup plugged his phone in to charge and put it on the nightstand. He looked at the digital clock there. 11:48. Yep. Time to go to bed. Hiccup was tired. 

But, when he turned off the lamp and closed his eyes, his mind started racing with horrible thoughts. Viggo would find him here. He would hurt him worse than he ever had for running away. He would keep him locked up in his basement. He would…

No, no, no! Hiccup was catastrophizing. None of those things would come to fruition. Absolutely none of them. He was going to be okay. 

To not think of those things, Hiccup took inventory of his body and surroundings. He was comfortable in a bed, in Dagur’s house, an hour and a half away from the college. He was away from Viggo. He’d had a good dinner. He’d had a good conversation with his friend. His door was locked. He was safe.

He was safe. 

After what felt like forever, Hiccup drifted off into sleep. 


End file.
